The Last Vermeer (2019) Timeline Explained – Every Event in Order

Han van Meegeren was arrested on charges of collaboration with the enemy and using proceeds from the sale of a Vermeer painting to finance an Abwehr espionage network. The painting had been recovered from Hermann Goering's private collection in Austria, leading authorities to believe Han had sold a genuine masterpiece to the Nazis.

Foreshadowing: Earlier in the film, Han mentions that before the war his work was not warmly received by critics, hinting at his resentment that would later drive his actions.

• han van meegeren arrest
• collaboration
• vermeer painting
• abwehr

Piller changed course after discovering Han's unfinished canvas in the abandoned safehouse. The painting featured a portrait that bore a striking resemblance to Piller's own lover, Cootje, which convinced him that Han's claim about forging the Vermeers was genuine. This personal connection made him believe Han was telling the truth about creating forgeries rather than selling authentic works.

Foreshadowing: Earlier, Han had requested art materials while in custody to create a canvas as corroborating evidence, which Plant had initially dismissed but later took seriously.

• joseph piller
• han van meegeren defense
• courtroom
• cootje portrait

Han used bakelite to craft convincing imitations of Vermeers. He then manipulated the aging of canvases by heating and crumpling them to mimic the passage of time, creating a false aged appearance that fooled art critics and authentication experts.

Foreshadowing: The film establishes early on that Han was a skilled artist whose own work had been rejected by critics, giving him both the motive and the technical ability to commit sophisticated forgeries.

• forgery technique
• bakelite
• vermeer fake
• canvas aging

During the trial, Piller orchestrated a disturbance through his ally Esper Dekker, who created a distraction in the courtroom. While attention was diverted, acid was splashed on one of the paintings, revealing Han's hidden signature beneath the surface. This dramatic moment proved the works were forgeries and became the turning point that led to Han's conviction being overturned.

Foreshadowing: Piller had learned from Han how the forgeries were created, giving him the knowledge needed to plan this revelation strategy.

• courtroom disturbance
• acid
• han signature
• painting reveal

Han was initially convicted of collaborating with the Nazis, but his conviction was overturned when the courtroom revelation exposed his signature on one of the paintings. This proved the paintings were forgeries rather than authentic Vermeers sold to the Nazis, fundamentally changing the case from one of treason to artistic fraud. The public then celebrated Han as a genius rather than a traitor.

Foreshadowing: Throughout the trial, art critics who had authenticated the works aligned with the prosecution, making the signature revelation even more impactful.

• conviction overturned
• han van meegeren verdict
• forgery
• genius

Dirk Hannema discovered a book in the abandoned safehouse containing a dedication written by Han van Meegeren to Adolf Hitler. This revelation shocked Piller, forcing him to reconsider whether Han's claimed despise for the Nazis was genuine or merely a calculated performance designed to escape punishment.

Foreshadowing: Earlier, Han had claimed his public cooperation with the Nazis was something he despised in private, making this discovery a crucial test of that assertion.

• hitler dedication
• han van meegeren
• dirk hannema
• book evidence

After confronting Han about the book and being dismissed by the painter who insisted there was nothing left to justify, Piller became disgusted by Han's manipulation and lies. He burned the book to destroy the final piece of evidence that could either vindicate or condemn Han, symbolizing his rejection of the lies surrounding the case while leaving him with unresolved questions about truth and memory.

Foreshadowing: This act follows Piller's pattern throughout the film of wrestling with difficult truths about guilt, innocence, and the blurred lines between them.

• piller burns book
• evidence destroyed
• moral choice
• truth

Han claimed he despised the Nazis in private while publicly playing along with them. He explained that his forgeries of Vermeer paintings had made him wealthy enough to finance a lavish lifestyle, and he used that money to maintain his cooperation with the Nazis. His motivations appeared to be financial gain combined with a desire to prove his artistic worth after critics rejected his original work.

Foreshadowing: The film establishes that before the war, Han's own paintings were not warmly received, creating resentment that may have fueled his desire to surpass Vermeer through forgeries.

• motivation
• naz collaboration
• financial gain
• artistic resentment

Joseph Piller was a Dutch Jew who had served in the resistance during World War II. After the war, he worked under the Canadian military administration of the Netherlands, leading the Dutch operation investigating crimes related to stolen art. His position put him at the center of the controversy over Han van Meegeren's fate.

Foreshadowing: Piller's background as a resistance fighter and Jewish survivor gives his investigation personal stakes in a postwar landscape filled with questions about collaboration and justice.

• joseph piller
• resistance
• canadian administration
• dutch investigator

Han was initially accused of using proceeds from the Vermeer sale to finance an Abwehr espionage network, which was German military intelligence. This accusation framed him as not just a collaborator but an active participant in wartime espionage against the Allies, making the charges far more serious than simple art dealing.

Foreshadowing: This accusation set up the initial conflict between Piller and the Dutch authorities who wanted harsher treatment for Han.

• abwehr
• espionage network
• charges
• collaboration accusation

Han faced the death penalty for looting Dutch cultural treasures, a crime considered severe in the postwar period. The Dutch authorities, particularly the faction led by Dirk Hannema, wanted full custody of Han and pushed for the maximum punishment, threatening a dangerous postwar witch-hunt if he remained protected by Allied authorities.

Foreshadowing: The stakes of the trial were established early, with the Allied withdrawal creating a power vacuum that allowed Dutch authorities to intensify their pursuit of Han.

• death penalty
• looting
• dutch cultural treasures
• witch-hunt

The prosecution relied heavily on art critics who had initially authenticated the paintings attributed to Vermeer. These experts testified about the works' authenticity, supporting the narrative that Han had sold genuine masterpieces to the Nazis. When evidence emerged that the works were forgeries, it exposed how even experts could be deceived and undermined the prosecution's case.

Foreshadowing: The irony that critics who had praised the works as authentic Vermeers now had to confront their mistake became central to the film's themes about art authentication and expertise.

• art critics
• authentication
• expert testimony
• trial evidence